Brazil unemployment rate down to 9% in second quarter

Brazil’s unemployment rate in the second quarter of 2022 stood at 9.3 percent. In the previous quarter, the index was 11.1 percent and in the same quarter last year joblessness was reported at 14.2 percent.

The rate fell across 22 of the 27 Brazilian states in the second quarter from the first three months of the year, per data released by statistics agency IBGE.

The sharpest plunge in the quarter was seen in the state of Tocantins, down 3.8 percentage points. Pernambuco fell 3.5 percentage points and Alagoas and Piauí also stood out, both with a decline of around three points. Despite the shrinkage in these Northeastern states, the region still has the highest unemployment among Brazilian regions—12.7 percent.

Sorting rates by state, the highest index for unemployment is that of Bahia (15.5%), followed by Pernambuco (13.6%) and Sergipe (12.7%). The lowest are in Santa Catarina (3.9%), Mato Grosso (4.4%), and Mato Grosso do Sul (5.2%).

The Federal District, Amapá, Ceará, Mato Grosso, and Rondônia displayed steady levels.